Kites

Bollywood’s latest attempt to expand their horizons is an accessible watch for viewers new to the genre. It’s not three hours long for starters! The beautiful leads do not break into songs! J (Roshan), an American NRI (‘Non Resident Indian’) shyster living in Las Vegas, falls for Linda (Mori), the Mexican fiancée of his girlfriend’s brother Tony (Brown). He speaks ‘Hinglish’; she knows only Espanol. As ‘love and music have no language’ our linguistically-challenged duo bond and elope. Tony vows bloody revenge. Basu reworks diverse sources like ‘Bonnie and Clyde’, ‘Thelma and Louise’, ‘Sin City’ and the 80s Hindi classic ‘Ek Duuje Ke Liye’ to (unintentional) amusing effect into his propulsive plot. The technically accomplished result is cheesy, engaging but unmemorable ‘time-pass’. Look out for Brett Ratner’s shorter ‘remix’ version.